30 Feet
by black-klepon
Summary: An array went wrong, leaving Edward and Roy stuck within the range of 30 feet. Can they refrain from fighting each other when someone's hunting Roy? - Eventual Roy/Ed
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Edward groaned when the train finally stopped into a halt at Central Station. The metallic squeaking sound was enough to wake him up from his uncomfortable rest, and he rubbed his bleary eyes. His butt was sore as the result of hours of train journey from South Station, thanks to the courtesy of the Brigadier-General bastard. Said man had assigned him on a mission to search for a certain alchemist that the military though as dangerous.

"Dangerous my ass," he grunted as people started to form a crowd near the exit. The search had ended up as a wild goose chase, and though he did find the alchemist, it was nothing like the descriptions inside the files that he was given. The old man had been trembling all the time, his notes scattered messily on the ground when Ed had cornered him. He'd made sure that his target would never catch the attention of the military ever again, and with that he'd let him go. Driven by confusion, he had decided to call Mustang to ask what to do next.

'_Get his notes and bring them back here,_' the man had said, '_and hop on the next train as soon as possible._'

Pushing himself up, Ed twisted his body and let out a relieved groan as his stiff muscles finally got the chance to move. He spared one last glance to the seats and twitched slightly before leaping off of the train. Now all he had to do was to head back to central HQ, hand over his report and then return to his apartment. Along with making sure that he wouldn't meet the train seats for at least a week or more… that added one more thing to do. Get the General Bastard to improve them for the sake of a little more comfort when having a long trip…

But anyway, his contract with the military would expire within a month or so; and it would probably be good to live a peaceful life, far from the military, after all he and Al had gone through…

With that thought set in mind, the older Elric trotted through the crowded platform to find a small cab, intent on recovering his diminished resting time right after the HQ.

Roy looked up lazily from the report he'd been doodling on when the familiar voice greeted his subordinates outside his private office. He was expecting the arrival around an hour or two later, but he wouldn't really complain for the early report. The faster he got them the faster he'd be sleeping in his own bed.

He didn't even flinch when the door to his office slammed open, its poor hinges rattling as his blond subordinate stormed in. No salutes or anything, but Roy was more than used to that.

"Afternoon, Fullmetal." He greeted idly, taking in the appearances of the blond standing across his table. Aside from some visible fatigue lines that were half-etched to his facial features, Ed looked pretty much normal, nothing out of place. "I assume the mission was pretty easy, hm?"

"Cut the crap, Mustang." Ed answered off-handedly, waving the report on his automail. "This is what you want, right? I'm only dropping by to hand it over and claim my sleep back."

Roy didn't answer for a moment, still waiting if the blond had more to say. He himself wasn't really interested with his mission, but the top brass had given it to him so he couldn't really do anything but to accept it and pass it over to Ed. Sighing, he straightened his body into a more serious position, and said, "verbal reports, Fullmetal."

Edward twitched visibly when he was told to speak when all he wanted was to dump himself on his bed. "What, couldn't you just read the damn papers?"

"I would, later, as you know that I have to spare some time dedicated solely to read your reports."

A raised eyebrow and a small smirk, Ed knew that he was doomed with no way out until he gave what his superior wanted. "Fine," he threw his hands up and slumped gracelessly on the black couch. "I don't have any idea what your superiors are thinking about this mission. Said he's dangerous, a threat to the country and such, but what did I find? An old alchemist, maybe the same age as Granny Rockbell. I didn't need to eliminate him even in the slightest; all I did was to mention the military's actions when he messed around again."

The Brigadier-General gave a low hum of approval, nodding twice. "That's all?"

Edward glared. "What the fuck do you expect, Mustang? He's an old man!"

"Old or not, his knowledge might still be dangerous. Even though his research wasn't a success, who knows that if his notes fell into the wrong hand?" Sighing, Roy pushed himself up and stood up, continuing, "personally I don't agree with this mission, Fullmetal. I'd rather give you a more challenging thing to do, if I have to say. Now, about his theories; did you find anything interesting?"

The older Elric was more than eager to slam his reports on Mustang's desk and then leave this building. He had more things to do – not to mention that his stomach was starting to rumble – other than slouching in this room and explain the events all over again. Logical thinking told him that the quicker he told the story again, the sooner he would be able to return to his apartment. "He tried to activate the array that he had etched on the rocks, but nothing happened. There were some sparks of alchemic energy from the lines, but that's all. Nothing more. I'd expected you to ask for the details of the array, so I sketched it on the report and you can see it for yourself later."

Roy pondered about keeping his blond subordinate longer for the sole sake of pissing him off (he was damned bored today, for God's sake). But then he decided against it and gestured with his hand.

Edward peered from his half-lidded eyelid and noticed his summoning. He pushed himself with his automail up, and dragged himself over to the desk. The papers hung in the air, waiting to be taken by the Brigadier-General. Ed quirked one eyebrow up when the dark-haired man seemed to hesitate a bit.

The older alchemist finally untwined his fingers to grab the one end of the papers, and barely had the time to pull back them when he felt the familiar surge of energy overflowed through his body. He gritted his teeth forcefully, trying to stay conscious despite the amount of energy that was threatening to knock him out. For a second he thought that maybe he was the only one experiencing this, but when he looked to his subordinate across him, he knew he wasn't the only one.

Blue and red arrows of alchemic energy sparked from the papers, and Ed's eyes widened as realization hit him like a tidal wave. "Mustang, let go of the damn papers now!" He managed to say through gritted teeth, closing his eyes and tried to separate himself from the energy that was holding them both.

"I'm trying, Fullmetal, you don't have to order me!" Roy replied, equally strained. He was still trying to pull himself from the force, damnit, but it felt like Armstrong was crushing him with a bear hug!

As if triggered by his words, the force seemed to loosen up a bit but the alchemic sparks were still there and seemed to be intensifying. After what seemed like a hellish torment (for Roy, at least. Ed had gone through automail surgery and that was really nothing compared to it), the blue sparks disappeared just like that, and the out-of-nowhere wind hurled both alchemist into opposite directions. Roy's back hit the wall below the window, and Ed (surprisingly) was thrown towards the office door.

As expected, the Lieutenant immediately came and slammed open the door, making the older Elric sandwiched between the wood and the concrete white wall.

"Sir, what happened?" She inquired, not noticing that Ed was stuck until a muffled groan was heard. She glanced below, and closed the door in order to let the young alchemist breathe again. "I'm sorry, Edward, I didn't notice you there..." She apologized.

Edward climbed back up to his feet, and when he noticed Mustang still trying to collect himself, he half smirked. "Need any help, Mustang?"

Roy's reply was an annoyed growl, "no thanks, Fullmetal." And then he pushed himself to stand up, straightening his uniform. "Mind to explain what just happened then?"

"Like hell I'd know." Ed answered gruffly, "now would you let me go home so that I can sleep already?"

Riza only stood there, observing the exchange between the two.

Finally, "dismissed, Fullmetal."

Letting out an annoyed sigh, he turned back and headed towards the door. "See ya later, Lieutenant." He bid airily, waving his automail.

He had just stepped his right foot outside the door frame when his knees buckled beneath him, forcing him to kneel down. Arrows of pain shot through his whole body, and it took all his guts to stifle the scream that was threatening to spill out from his mouth. From the corner of his eye, he noticed that Roy was suddenly in the same position, clutching at his blue jacket tightly. "What... the fuck...?" He muttered roughly as the pain seemed to double. He felt an arm tugging on his right shoulder, dragging him back toward the middle of the room.

And the more he neared the desk, the lessen the pain became. Until finally it all disappeared and he saw the Lieutenant with crossed arms standing between him and the Brigadier-General.

"Lieutenant? What did you just-?" Roy blinked, clearly confused.

"I don't know, General, all I had in mind was to drag you two." She answered, eyeing the dark-haired man and the blond.

Realization dawned on him, and Edward snatched his file from the top of the desk. He skipped the front pages until he arrived at the sketch of the transmutation circle, and he slapped his forehead. "Oh hell." He deadpanned.

"What do you mean, Fullmetal?" Roy demanded.

"Now I know why the array didn't work when that old alchemist tried to activate it," he flung the file back onto the desk and smashed his head, "I didn't touch him when he activated it, but both you and I touched it when I handed it over to you-"

Roy didn't need Ed to finish the sentence. "And, by all means, what is the main function of the circle?"

"I can't really tell, but," he paused, rubbing his eyes in exasperation, "one thing for sure is that the damned array's designed to keep people together."

The Brigadier-General was working two plus two inside his head, and his eyes widened when the answer came. "Which means that I'm stuck with you."

The blond glared from behind his locks. "Do you have to rub it on my face, Mustang?"

Silence engulfed the room as each person was drowned n their own thought. Riza was the first to broke it, saying, "how far are you two stuck?"

"Huh?"

"I mean, how far can you two be before the array's effect took its toll?" Riza repeated, looking back and forth the two alchemists. "Judging by the distance from this desk to the door, it's about 30 feet, I'd say."

"Thr-_Thirty_ feet?" Ed spluttered, incredulous. "I couldn't stay away from this bastard for more than thirty _fucking _feet?"

Roy took this moment to voice out his thought, "I can also say that to you, Fullmetal."

"I'd suggest..." Riza began, and both men promptly clamped shut when her hand went to her gun, "you two calm down and try to figure out how to clean this mess up."

"Yes ma'am." Both alchemists obeyed in an instant. Sometimes Roy had to wonder how she could make even Fullmetal to be quiet with a simple movement... maybe if she hadn't been his subordinate she would be one of the top Generals above him, with all that attitude of hers...

"First off," she paused to close the door, "it's not how to undo the effect, but what are you two going to do when you're stuck like this?"

Silence again, and the older Elric mumbled quietly, "I can't have the bastard in my apartment, else poor thing's all cramped up. Even if Al's not around; it's barely enough to keep me and all of my personal belongings." He didn't dare to look up to his commanding officer, because he knew that he would only get teased again.

"Well, that leaves my house." Roy finished, standing back up. "I know that you wouldn't want to stay there, but it's the only place left. Come on, Fullmetal, stand up. We've got to work this matter out."

To be honest he _absolutely _didn't want to spend the night in the bastard's house. That was on the very top of his 'I-will-never-like-this' list… but when the situation came down to this, even if it was hard to admit, he was helpless to do anything. Firstly, because he had no idea what had happened; secondly, his brain was still a disarray after all the events, so he wouldn't be able to think of a solution. "…Fine." He reluctantly gave in, and huffed roughly. "Just don't blame me if some of your things got broken."


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I don't own Fullmetal Alchemist. Hiromu Arakawa does…

XXX

Chapter 2

As Edward slipped his key into its slot, Roy shrugged off his coat and folded it. He couldn't help but to glance over to the inside of his subordinate's apartment. Ed's apartment, he noticed, looked far smaller than any other ones he'd ever seen. Then again, it might be because of the fact that the space was _totally _cramped with stuffs. Edward hadn't lied when he'd said his apartment was very full…

Bookshelves, boxes, cupboards and other things took more spaces than anything Roy'd ever known of. He wasn't surprised at the very least when some strings of curses issued from inside. Chuckling, he called, "need any help, Ed?"

"Stop being an asshole and help me out, bastard!" Ed's high-pitched shriek was his reply.

Roy shook his head and laughed lightly. Edward might be 17 years old, but sometimes he still acted like the boy he used to be… hanging his coat on the pole provided, he walked carefully to the source of the voice. He paused in front of what he assumed as the older Elric's room, and had to prevent himself from laughing.

There, in the middle of the room, with boxes all over him, Edward was stuck between them and the floor. His flesh hand was trapped under one white box, thus making him incapable of alchemy. Still, Roy was Roy, and he couldn't help himself anymore. He bent down and patted the box above Ed's chest, "thought you said you could handle it?"

Edward glared venomously at his superior and almost shouted again when he felt the weight on his chest moved. From behind the box, even though he couldn't see it, he knew that Mustang was smirking at him – and probably would make fun of it later.

_Why do I have to be stuck with him, of all people? _Edward thought heatedly as he picked up the boxes one by one. _Might as well be stuck with chimeras in a cave…_ "Get the one near the fridge, Mustang, and then you can go back to your car first. I still have several more things to pack up."

Quirking an eyebrow, Roy asked, "you sure there's nothing else I should help you with? Because with your size and all-" He was cut off by Edward's yell.

"JUST GET THE HELL BACK TO YOUR DAMN CAR, BASTARD!" With that, Roy left the fuming blond behind and headed back to his car, laughing playfully all the way.

The older Elric was still fuming as he saw the Brigadier-General's back disappeared at the corner. That bastard… bad enough he was stuck with him; had to stay under the same roof; and now he was going to suffer from being called short all the time!

Several more minutes were needed before Ed was fully able to regain his composure. His left hand was still sore from being trapped; but this time it was accompanied by electric-like stinging pain. Quirking an eyebrow, he realized it a bit too late that he couldn't get far from Mustang - and so he dashed out with all his might before the black-haired man stepped into the elevator.

"MUSTAAAAANG!" He screamed, not caring whether his neighbors would wake up or not.

Roy, on the other hand, was completely oblivious to the fact that he wasn't supposed to be far from the older Elric. He could vaguely hear someone calling his name, but decided to shrug it off. He'd never come to this place before, so why would someone call him at a time like this?

Continuing to walk at a leisury pace, the calls were no longer heard. Roy smiled to himself; that was probably some imagination...

Edward growled quietly with suppressed annoyance. Damn that Mustang; was he ignoring him or really deaf? He'd shouted loud enough that the whole floor could probably hear him, yet he still hadn't got any reply or response whatsoever!

Then he took a sharp turn, his boots skidding on the floor to prevent him from falling. There, just on the end of corridor, the blue uniform disappeared on another corner. _Finally! _"Mustang!" Ed yelled again, picking up his pace.

This time, Roy could hear his blonde subordinate clearly. He stopped and turned around, but with the boxes covering his sight, he didn't notice the young alchemist ramming towards him.

The force of Ed's speed sent them both tumbling to the ground, the boxes thrown off of Roy's hand. A muffled "Eeep!" came from Ed, and Roy himself had the air knocked out of his lungs. "Oof!"

Ed, unfortunately, dived headlong right onto the Brigadier-General's torso, thus hurling them both a bit further. After they stopped, however; both alchemists were too stunned to move at all. Roy, being the one sandwiched between the weight above him and the floor, took most of the impact, leaving the older Elric with a bit of dizzy feeling.

For a moment neither moved, and Edward blinked once before jolting upright after he realized that Mustang was crushed under him. He stared down, and in embarassment, coughed lightly. "Uh, sorry 'bout that, Mustang." He offered a hand.

Roy groaned; the pain on the back of his head pounding against his skull. If he hadn't got a bump then he'd say he was rather lucky, considering how hard he had hit the concrete floor. His vision blurred for a bit before he recognized Ed's offering hand, and he took it without hesitation. But since his balance hadn't returned fully to him, Roy swayed for a bit and slumped against the wall.

Alarmed, the older Elric grabbed his superior by his back and helped him to stand back on his feet. "Oi, Mustang, you okay?" He asked anxiously. Sure, he hated the man with passion and wanted to punch the day out of him most of the times, but he didn't want to hurt him unintentionally... "Sorry, I, uh, didn't mean to crash into you."

Waving Ed's apology, Roy covered his eyes with his left hand. "It's fine, I didn't see you running towards me anyway." After he was sure that his mind wasn't swimming around again, the dark-haired man bent down to grab the box again. "Come on, let's go back to your room. I kind of forgot that I couldn't go out of the range." Ushering the half-concerned blond, he continued, "let's go, Ed. The sooner you get your things the sooner we can get some sleep."

"...You sure you're okay?" The young alchemist asked again, just to be sure.

At this, Mustang laughed lightly. "Ed, it'd take more than that to knock me out!" At the uncertain look that was directed at himself, he resumed again with a sigh, "I'm not that weak, okay? Now let's go."

Eventually enough, the blond nodded and began to walk back towards his room. The Brigadier-General followed behind him, this time with more care. Falling once was enough for the day, Roy reminded himself.

Soon enough found Edward with two boxes and a huge backpack; Roy with three boxes and a small bag. The former had a thoughtful look plastered on his face, while the latter was struggling with the things he had to carry.

Once, the older alchemist glanced over to his superior, and couldn't help but to snicker.

Roy noticed this, and growled, "what?"

Edward laughed, and raised his eyebrow playfully. "Thought you said you could handle it, bastard?"

Biting back a retort, Roy only grunted to himself and resumed to walk, ignoring the mocking look from his subordinate. He should've just let Ed bring the boxes, while he'd bring the bags...

The pair arrived at the car ten minutes later and Roy unlocked the key.

Edward jerked one of the doors open, dumped all the boxes and bags on the backseat and then slammed it close again.

Roy watched, silently wondering how long the military car would stay intact with treatment like that.

He was dragged back into reality, however, when the younger alchemist called - or rather, yelled. "Oi, bastard! Why're you only standing over there?"

Roy rolled his eyes in exasperation. _My house is going to be a wrecked ship_, he thought bemusedly. As he entered the car and heard a grumbling sound, he added one more, _I hope my fridge and food cabinet would survive this..._

The ride to Roy's house was silent, both men deep in their own thoughts.

Edward, thinking back over the day's previous events, tried to remember the array that had caused all of this. How stupid of him not to study it before handing it over... now he had to suffer the consequences - with _Mustang_, of all people! Why couldn't he be stuck with, say, Al? The thought itself made his heart sank even more. What if he couldn't separate himself from Mustang when his contract ended? Sure, it was not until few more months, but still...

Roy noticed his subordinate brooding while looking at the street, and sighed tiredly. This morning he had hoped to go to a bar and grab a drink; to forget his problems just for a moment, with all the top brass was pressing him... well to say that he wasn't used to it would be lying, but... he felt that now the pressure seemed a lot more... He threw a sidelong glance at the older Elric.

He knew that the blond's contract with the military would end few months later, and so with that he'd tried giving the less dangerous mission to him. But then the order had come about a week ago, and Roy had no choice but to assign Fullmetal to it. From the first time he'd laid a hand on the papers, he'd got a bad feeling about it all, and this morning his feeling hit him right on the face.

Damn that Brandt for giving him such a mission to hand over.

When the car finally pulled into a stop in front of his house, Roy couldn't help but to smirk at Edward's initial reaction.

Kicking the door open, Ed slammed it close with his automail foot. Roy flinched visibly.

Could the doors and furnitures in his house survive at all...?

"Hell, Mustang!" The blond's voice could be heard even from the outside, "that's no house, it's a fucking mansion!"

Getting out of the car, Roy leaned against it, and chuckled, "well, whoever said that my house's an ordinary house?" He answered amusedly.

Edward only did so much as to throw an annoyed glare at his superior before jerking the car's door open - again - and grabbed some of his belongings out. Walking over towards the front of the door, he laid them on the porch and shouted, "come on, Mustang! Open the door already; I wanna get to the books and the damned array!"

"Why don't you get them yourself? I've helped you back at your apartment, right?" The Brigadier-General replied airily, smirking when the blond stomped his way to the car. "Careful, Ed. This is military's car, not mine."

Glowering at the dark-haired man, Edward still slammed the door. "To hell with it, Mustang. Whether this is your car or not, I don't give a damn. I'm not even supposed to be here right this moment!" He retorted sharply.

Again, Roy sighed.

To separate them was going to be one hell of a job, and that was probably the understatement of the year. He and Ed didn't really get along well, despite the fact that the blond had softened… a bit… from the first time he'd met him. His short temper would never be gone anyway…

Peeking into the car, he noticed that Ed had brought all of his belongings and left nothing inside the vehicle. Digging his fingers into his pocket, Roy grabbed his keys and began to head towards the door. Edward stood on the grass, but he couldn't find it in himself to really care. He had to help the blond unpack his things, not to mention finishing his works for the day… maybe he'd have a glass or two later…

Sliding the key into its slot, Roy pushed the door open and flicked one of the switches. The lamps on the first hallway flickered into life, dimly lighting the corridor. The walls were, Ed noticed, rather plain, except for some pictures here and there. Some of them were just simple paintings of the mountains and grasslands; but who was he to protest the man's taste?

But the main room was what made the older Elric's breath hitch in his throat. The carvings on the walls around him, painted with a pale-cream color, giving them a touch of softness. On the end of the hall; a sliding window with a direct view to the man's backyard – which was just as big, if not bigger.

Several more paintings decorated the main hall, and with medium-sized dragon statue that was placed above a small cabinet - that was what captured the blond's attention.

Edward, being the curious man as he was, scooted closer to the statue to observe it.

Roy stayed still behind, amused at his subordinate's reaction to the dragon.

Raising a flesh hand carefully, as not to damage the property, Edward touched it, and wasn't really surprised when he could feel the precisely-sculpted scales along the dragon's twisting body. Blazing red wings half-unfurled, giving the statue a larger impression. Two yellow stones, which he automatically assumed as amber, were made as its eyes.

Where had Mustang got such thing...?

"In case you're wondering, Fullmetal, that dragon was given as a gift from a Xingian for my uncle who used to live here." Roy said, as if reading his thoughts. "This house is originally his, but then he passed it over to me, along with most of the furnitures." Shrugging off his blue military vest, he walked over to the stairs and gestured for the blond to follow. "Come, Ed, I'll show you your room."

Edward spared one last glance to the statue before following the dark-haired man upstairs. "So... you get all these things for free?" He asked disbelievingly.

"...More or less," the man answered off-handedly with a shrug. "The books in the library are all mine, though."

"You're a lucky bastard." Ed said, but then paused, "wait, what? You have a library?" Quickening his pace so that he was next to Roy, and he pointed a finger to the man. "For sure?"

"Well, yeah." Roy answered with a slight roll of his eyes. It should've offended him, but he couldn't find it in himself to feel like that at the very least… Throwing a quick glance at his subordinate, he then added, "and yes, you can go in there later. I don't mind, as long as you keep them in good condition."

"Will do." The older Elric immediately answered.

Soon enough they arrived on the upper floor, and the blond immediately observed his surroundings again. It wasn't much different than the floor below, except that this level had more of a… private aura. He supposed… it was where Mustang's rooms were located, after all. Following his superior, he glanced around the corridor, noticing several more paintings, before finally stopping in front of a door.

Grabbing the handle, Roy pushed it down and opened the door, ushering Edward to go inside. He flicked the switch on and waited for the room to be bright enough, before saying, "this is going to be your room, Fullmetal. You can put all of your belongings here, or inside the wardrobe, I don't mind. As long as you're comfortable with it, then it's fine by me. Though…" He paused for a second, "do try to keep it neat, Fullmetal." He finished with a quirk of an eyebrow.

"Yeah yeah, whatever. As long as I can find my own things; that's what you wanted to say, right?" Waving his automail, Ed had already began to head back towards the door to retrieve his boxes, before he paused in his tracks. "Oh yeah, how about the bathroom?"

"Ah-" Gesturing with his right hand, the dark-haired man said, "it's right across this room. Towels, soaps – you do bring them, don't you, Fullmetal?"

The older Elric gave a deadpan look at the owner of the house. "Well heck yeah, Mustang. Bad enough I have to stay under the same roof as you; and then I have to borrow your toiletries?" Shrugging, he resumed, "that'd probably end up as a nightmare for me." And with that, he got out of the room.

_Well, at least I've offered_, Roy thought dismissively, _won't hurt whether he'd said yes or no anyway._

XXX


End file.
